The Minister of Transportation, Senator Saidu Alkali, resigned from President Bola Tinubu’s cabinet on Tuesday evening, becoming the third minister to step down before the expiration of the March 31 deadline for political appointees seeking elective offices.
This was as the majority of cabinet members widely tipped to resign chose to retain their positions, including the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, who on Tuesday evening dismissed reports of his resignation as “fake news.”
Alkali, who hails from Gombe State, announced his decision after meeting with President Tinubu at the Presidential Villa on Tuesday evening, the State House media office revealed.
His Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Umar Jibril, confirmed the resignation in a statement, quoting the outgoing minister as saying, “I am deeply honoured to have served in this capacity and remain grateful to Mr President for the confidence reposed in me. I am proud of the progress we have made in advancing Nigeria’s transportation sector.”
Tinubu accepted the resignation and commended Alkali for his contributions to national development, the Presidency said.
The former senator, who previously represented Gombe Central Senatorial District, is expected to contest the Gombe State governorship seat in the 2027 elections, seeking to succeed Governor Inuwa Yahaya, whose second term ends in May 2027.
Alkali’s departure brings the total number of ministers who formally resigned ahead of the deadline to three, a far cry from the seven or more widely projected in the weeks preceding Tuesday’s deadline.
On Monday, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb Yusuf Tuggar, and the Minister of State for Humanitarian Affairs, Dr Yusuf Sununu, resigned to contest the Bauchi State governorship and the Kebbi State senatorial seat, respectively.
The resignations follow a directive issued by President Tinubu through the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation on March 17, 2026, ordering all political appointees with elective ambitions to vacate their positions on or before March 31.
The circular, signed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, and issued by the Permanent Secretary (General Services Office), Dr Ibrahim Kana, stated that the directive was “pursuant to the provisions of Section 88(1) of the Electoral Act, 2026, as well as the timetable issued by the Independent National Electoral Commission for party primaries ahead of the 2027 general elections.”
Section 88(1) of the Electoral Act 2026 requires political appointees, including ministers, advisers, and heads of government agencies, to resign their positions before they can participate in party primaries or be nominated for any elective office.
The provision is designed to prevent the use of public office and state resources to gain an unfair advantage during the electoral process.
The directive applies to ministers, ministers of state, special advisers to the President, senior special assistants, special assistants, personal assistants, directors-general, and chief executive officers of federal parastatals, commissions, agencies, and government-owned companies.
According to its timetable, the Independent National Electoral Commission scheduled party primaries between April 23 and May 30, 2026, with the submission of the names of candidates due by July 11 for presidential and National Assembly elections, and August 8 for governorship and state assembly contests.
Outside the cabinet, several lower-ranking appointees and heads of agencies also complied with the directive.
They include Nasiru Gawuna, who resigned as Chairman of the Governing Board of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria in a letter dated March 27 to pursue political ambitions in Kano; Abdulrazak Namdas, who stepped down as a governing board member of the Niger Delta Development Commission representing the North-East Zone to contest the Adamawa governorship; and Nasir Ja’oji, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Citizenship and Leadership, who resigned over the weekend.
Adelabu had publicly declared his interest in the Oyo State governorship in October 2025, telling supporters, “I have been on this journey for a while now. But this 2027, God has shown that it’s my turn. It’s Adelabu time.”
But as the deadline expired on Tuesday, Adelabu’s media aide, Bolaji Tunji, told journalists in a WhatsApp chat that the minister had no intention of leaving.
“The news of the minister’s resignation is fake. There is no truth to it,” Tunji said, sharing images of a circulating resignation letter stamped “fake news.”
The PUNCH gathered that Adelabu was in office as of Monday before jetting out on an official assignment to the United Kingdom.
At a press briefing in Abuja last week, Adelabu had declined to confirm or deny his political plans, instead emphasising his focus on the power sector.
“What matters to me most now is this job that I am doing as the Honourable Minister of Power. I am excelling on the job, and that is my priority for now,” he said.
The PUNCH had exclusively reported on Tuesday, March 24, 2026, that Adelabu had fallen out of the power equation in the state.
Multiple sources from the meeting of South-West APC stakeholders with President Tinubu in Lagos on Sunday, March 22, 2026, told The PUNCH that the party moved toward a consensus arrangement favouring Senator Sharafadeen Alli for the Oyo governorship, Deputy Governor Obafemi Hamzat for Lagos, and Senator Olamilekan Adeola for Ogun.
Several other ministers who had been widely reported to be nursing political ambitions also did not resign before the deadline.
The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, who was reported to be consulting stakeholders over a possible Ogun governorship bid, remained in office, potentially for similar reasons, given the consensus tilt toward Senator Adeola.
The Minister of Agriculture, Abubakar Kyari, touted as a potential successor to Borno Governor Babagana Zulum, also stayed, as did the Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, who had been linked to senatorial ambitions in Abia State.
It had been earlier reported that several ministers had developed “cold feet” about resigning due to the President’s refusal to publicly endorse any specific candidates.
Tinubu had reportedly directed those interested in vying for offices to “go and test their popularity on the field”.
